Eyes Open
by wordsonpage
Summary: Elliot Brookes was a southern girl who'd lost many things in the outbreak, one being her sense of self. With a little help from strangers seeking shelter from hell on Earth Elliot slowly begins to realise what she stands for and she was always destined to be in the world.
1. Chapter 1

**First publication on this site. A story for any one who loves Daryl Dixon and lets face it most of us do! Reviews and suggestions welcome. This story is a work in progress, I have a few chapters already written but want to see what people do and don't like before I proceed with uploading what I've written. **

**Chapter one- Fates Colliding **

Daryl couldn't believe this one broad had cleared this house by her self, she was holed up pretty good, a fenced off house rigged with solar power. She didn't look nothing special, could tell she took care of her self by keeping in shape but these days everyone was running for their life's more, had no extra height to give her an advantage girl couldn't have been more than 5'6. Sure was a speedy fucker though, had Daryl knocked down and restrained before he knew which way was up. And he was pissed off. Pissed off this little lady had got one over him, pissed off he was tied to a chair and pissed off she had a this house when it's what Rick and the others needed so badly.

She stood leaning on the wall opposite, twisting a knife between her fingers, her cold blue eyes never leaving his as though she was trying to extract information from him without words. Her breathing remained levelled giving Daryl the impression she had pulled stunts like this before and come off better.

"how'd a little lady like you stumble across this haven?" Daryl looked up at her from where he had been restrained to the chair, he was pulling at the cable ties she had used to bind his hands whilst he was out cold, if he could only distract her long enough he had a good shot at turning the table.

Elliot rubbed her neck whilst considering her options, tell him this was her house and risk him trying to take what was hers or lie and try to put the scare's on this redneck. Her options weren't great.

"I didn't stumble upon it, it belongs to my fiancé, Danny" it wasn't a lie, it had belonged to Danny before , before it all got complicated. Elliot pushed the lump in her throat down to the place she had hidden everything else for so long now.

Daryl held her gaze steady, he smelt bullshit " Where's Danny boy now?" he snarled "Bit risky leaving wifey behind to play guard,"

Elliot scoffed her arms coming across her chest, " Looks like Wifey did pretty well from where I'm standing,"

Daryl managed to conceal the fact he had ripped his hands free from her ties, looking around the room he couldn't see his crossbow anywhere. The only weapons were the knife in the brunettes hand and a gun on the side, if he moved quick he could grab the gun and take down the little lady at least long enough to have a civilised conversation about sharing residency. Rick and the group were counting on him.

Daryl lunged for the gun and held it pointed execution style at Wifeys head his chest rising quickly,

"Now listen here and listen good Princess," her blue eyes held his her knife remained by her side. Daryl didn't miss the fact she wasn't fazed by the gun being held to head, in fact she was eerily calm.

"You got a pretty sweet deal here you and Danny boy," Daryl kept the gun raised his heart pounding he really didn't want to take a life in cold blood, " I got a group of people about 8, good people, who need somewhere to stay and I think you got a couple of rooms going free, am I right?"

Elliot laughed a deep throaty laugh, she relaxed against the counter, this was either a desperate redneck or a dumb one.

"It ain't polite to hold a gun to a ladies head ya know," she raised her brow throwing Daryl off guard " if it was refuge you was looking for ya probably shouldn't attack me, so I suggest you lower my gun. That is unless you intend on pulling that there trigger,"

"Not until we reach a deal sweetheart, like I said around 8 people who can pull their weight and help keep walkers off your land in exchange for somewhere to rest their heads and shelter, do we have a deal?"

"You're not the smartest redneck are ya?" Elliot nodded to the gun " think a "survivor" like yourself should know the weight of a loaded gun" a smile played on her full red lips. This guy didn't scare her he was just trying to find a shelter for his people, she had plenty of space in the house just had to hash out some details.

Daryl considered the broad before him, he'd be lying to say she didn't intrigue him with how she held her own against an opposing force. Hell little lady probably guessed he would set him self free and grab the gun and even then she still had him backed in a corner. He watched as she lowered the knife to the floor, held her hands up before him and turned so he could see she was unarmed.

"Your turn," echoed around the empty garage as Daryl turned showing he wasn't hiding anything.

"I'm Elliot, Elliot Brookes," She held her small hand to him in a peace-offering which he took noting she had a firm grip.

"Daryl Dixon,"

Elliot leant back against the counter her arms folding over chest, "Lets talk about your group, why should I let 8 total strangers in here? How can I trust you won't just wait until dusk and all 8 of you kill me in my sleep and toss me to the walkers?"

Daryl had no idea how to convince this chick to take them in , he was the brawl and muscle of the group this talking and reasoning business was always Rick's part. He figured he'd play to a woman's maternal side.

"Well 3 of our group are kids so it'd just be the 5 of us attacking you," He was glad she smiled at that. Scratching his head he thought ahead for his next argument, Hershel an old sweet man was a good selling point always good to have a doctor round these days. It hadn't gone unnoticed that she was only concerned about her own safety and the references to me and I, what about Danny Boy?

Elliot dragged in a breath, there were 3 kids out there in that hell. She didn't need to know much more before she was sold on new visitors. "How old are the kids?" it was barely a whisper.

"Beth's 17, she's Hershel's girl one of the old men in camp and then Rick has two kids, Carl who's 13 and a new arrival Judith she's barely a few months old," Daryl noticed she didn't go all gooey as he'd hoped but the kids were definitely pulling the old heart strings of the little lady.

"I've worked really hard to make this place as safe as possible Dixon, I've lost everything, all that I give a damn about in this shitty world. So if I let you and your people in you gotta give me your word I won't regret it. I see one person causing trouble and you're all gone!" Elliot again moved toward Daryl holding out her hand

"You got a deal little lady," Daryl took her hand again beaming from ear to ear, he had done it, kept his people safe and given them hope if only for a little while.

Elliot left the room with Daryl in tow, she explained she would pack up a few supplies and then they would hit the road before they lost any more light. Daryl followed her throw the house, it looked fairly untouched by walkers as Elliot explained Danny had worked on an electric fence before the break out hit wide spread, was damn proud of himself for choosing to try and have an eco friendly house as they now had intermittent electricity so long as they had sun light. Daryl mussed that this Danny guy sounded like a smart man.

"even get hot water if I'm lucky," Elliot laughed.

They headed up stairs were Daryl noticed pictures of Elliot with a handsome dark haired man in a suit decorated the walls along with a kids drawings.

"The house is spacious Daryl but people are still gonna have to bunk,"

"I count 5 bedrooms that's 4 minus where you'll be sleeping Elliot, it's a hella lot better then the digs we're in at the moment," Daryl laughed about the sleeping in the vehicles, as much as he'd grown to love Glenn sharing a truck with him and Maggie was starting to wear thin.

Elliot couldn't bring herself to argue about rooms and suggested they leave.

"Before we go I'll be needing my crossbow Princess," Daryl blocked Elliot's exit on the hallway.

"Don't call me that," Elliot went to push past Daryl Dixon but he held steady. " You can have your crossbow, although fat lotta good it did having it on your last trip." Daryl liked this girls sass, could tell she was going to a run a tight ship with his crowd. He followed her down the stairs and into a second garage where two cars sat stationary . One a BMW X5 series in a platinum white and then a Nissan Titan in black that looked a little out of place,

Daryl let a whistle of appreciation escape him , "Nice wheels Princess," he taunted as he walk around the cars he naturally gravitated toward the BMW but he was met with surprise when Elliot climbed into the Nissan, pleasantly surprised.

"Get in the damn car before I change my mind,"

Daryl walked round to the passenger side, he wasn't happy about her driving but she had agreed to let them stay and returned his beloved crossbow, hell two out of three wasn't bad. On his short journey he observed how many children's toys adorned the garage, boys toys specifically.

Elliot explained the fence that kept walkers out was run by the solar power so whilst it was shutting Daryl would have to cover her until it was closed. The task was easy was only 2 walkers out front they weren't even tempted to run in the open gates they were happy idly following the Nissan but to be safe Daryl let two arrows fire. Elliot noted how he got them execution style and smiled at him with a side ways glance.

Elliot had been given directions by Daryl and was headed on the course to collect the others, the silence had filled the air. Elliot was tempted to flick the cd player on as she so often did, it was normally the only other time she heard someone else's voice but she couldn't be dealing with Daryl mocking what ever music she had in there.

"Elliot I gotta ask you a personal question," Daryl had wanted to wait but he couldn't piece together the puzzle, he didn't miss the panic flash over her face or how quick she composed herself in a split second a wall throwing itself together holding the flood gate shut tight. " You mentioned your fiancé Danny. Will he have an issue with a redneck and his band of merry men just high tailing it into his house? I can't be dealing with some jumped up dude thinking we're pissing all over his territory,

Elliot kept looking forward her eyes never leaving the road ahead, she dragged in a breath. Why did she even mention Danny? She wasn't even sacred of this stupid redneck, why the hell did she hide behind the pathetic excuse that was Danny.

"You don't need to worry about a pissing contest Daryl," His questioned her with his eyes and watched as she reached for the cd player hitting on the guitar riff of some Carrie Underwood filling the car, "Danny's long gone," her eyes took back to the road ahead whilst she missed the silence she had grown accustomed to.

They approached the highway where the group was holed up waiting for Daryl to return, Elliot noted how a rugged looking man, a Korean guy and a young brunette all pulled there weapons out and took precautionary aim at the car. Daryl jumped out the passenger seat immediately defusing the escalating situation. The group all ran forward to greet Daryl, some hugged others shook his hand one older guy just nodded from his perch on the tail gate of a truck. Elliot climbed down from her own truck slamming the door she rested against it watching the touching reunion, how long had it been since she had seen a human treat another with compassion?

The group all noticed the girl keeping back, Rick noted the gun she held by her side. Daryl explained that they had saved each other from a small band of thugs, he embellished the story somewhat and skipped the part where she held him captive and he had threatened her with an empty gun, the guys just needed to know she had accepted them on her land for refuge. Rick wanted to talk to her, he stalked over with Daryl and introduced himself,

"Elliot my names Rick, Rick Grimes and I cant tell you how appreciative we are of you taking us in. You have my word that we will not be a bother, we'll contribute to your group. Share our supplies, help with whatever we are able," so this was the kids dad,

"That's awfully kind of you Mr. Grimes but back at the house its just me, so your supplies should be safe for now, we should start to make tracks if we're gonna get back before nightfall," She offered him a smile, her eyes not meeting his but finding the young boy Daryl had called Carl.

"Of course, we are all good to follow your lead Elliot." Rick smiled his appreciation again and left Daryl to ride with Elliot again.

The vehicles all headed back to the gated off house making good speed and arriving before nightfall.

Back at the house Elliot has shown the adults around and told them to make themselves welcome, Rick had thanked her a thousand times whilst the others had unpacked their essentials. Rick had advised they keep most of there stuff packed up in the trucks, they couldn't afford to get too content here, but none of them had let Elliot in on that detail.

Sitting at the table in the kitchen Elliot was drawn to the petite blonde cradling the baby, she saw a lot of her younger self in Beth. She saw how carefully she handled Judith, how it all seemed so natural but Beth still glanced at the older girls in the group to guide her when needed.

"You're a natural ," She smiled as he smoothed a finger over Judith's cheek, the babe had been lulled into a sleep and was not waking up for anyone. "She's really content with you, its sweet to watch,"

Beth beamed at Elliot her little eyes lighting up,

"Thanks Elliot," Beth bit her lip " I think it's real kind of you of to help us and give us a place stay. I hope you didn't feel you had to after Daryl helped you after that group of guys jumped you,"

"What? Beth, what exactly did Daryl say happened to me?"

The young blonde told the story of how Daryl had helped Elliot when she was jumped by a rouge group of bandits then when she'd gotten hurt he'd helped her back here, "That's what happened right? Daryl's real brave you know,"

"Something like that," Elliot was dumbstruck that Dixon had twisted the story just to save face, she would get that son a bitch.

Nightfall entered quickly, Elliot explained that she would be going around the perimeter to do some routine checks but that the group should help themselves to water to freshen up, really she needed a break from going from solo to host to 8 complete strangers.

Shoving her feet into her boots Elliot grabbed her knife and pulled her sweatshirt tight around her, the cold night air had a frosty bite to it but these checks were essential for Elliot, taking off from the front porch she sucked in the Georgia air and walked down towards the fence, she was looking for any weak spots in the fence she was a big fan of prevention.

When she was about half way around she could sense something near her in the dark, she kept out of the moon light and into the thicker trees on the outskirts of the garden her grip on the knife tightening. Elliot kept her steps light and took to crouching behind a thicket of trees. Somebody had broken through the fence by the sound of footsteps it was living and the lack of groans almost confirmed it but without any light it was almost impossible to tell.

Who ever it was grabbed Elliot from behind throwing her to the floor holding her down with their weight , she could feel knees on either side of her waist and her hands had been restrained it was impossible to see the intruder as her brown hair had flown over her face in the attack that didn't stop Elliot from thrashing with all her might. Survival instinct kicked in and Elliot thrust her head against the intruders , their arms freeing hers as they flew to the source of pain Elliot had created. It gave her enough time and room to shove them off before scrambling to her feet. The intruder grabbed her ankle holding her still.

"Quit havin a pissy fit, its me Daryl," The scruffy blonde grunted.

"Daryl?" Elliot crouched down to his level and grabbed his hand away from the red patch on his forehead, "What the hell where you thinking?"

"thought you was a break in," He winced as her fingers grazed the wound. " Get off," he shoved her back onto her ass.

"I'm sorry, I said I was going to do some checks," She smiled to her self as the big bad Daryl Dixon was wincing. " Shouldn't have followed me, or you coulda at least made your presence known,"

They sat in silence for a moment Elliot was pulling grass from the floor stealing glances at Daryl who was looking out to the woods beyond the fence, looking lost in thought but he was mostly sulking because this was the second time that time this girl had him pinned.

"I am sorry, had I a known it was you, I wouldn't have ….," Daryl cast her a sideways glance "Honest,"

He nodded his appreciation , not that he would have said but the girl had a hell of head butt. He stood from the ground and offered her a hand to steady herself which she accepted. They walked to the house in silence keeping pace with one another.

"Wait," Elliot stopped Daryl with a hand to his arm, "Do we tell it was the same group that jumped me came back to finish me off and you gallantly jumped to my aid or do we tell them the truth," Climbing the steps she turned to regard him hands on her hips her head pointed to the side showing she meant business.

Daryl looked to the ground a smirk twitching as his lips, he slung his crossbow over his shoulder, his hand coming up to scratch at his chin " And what 'sa truth, Elliot?" He noted the twinkle in her eye, this broad was flirting with him and dammit Daryl Dixon was playing ball.

"That big bad Daryl Dixon has been outsmarted by a little 'Princess' ," he laughed as she threw in the nickname he'd used. "Twice,"

Turning on her heel she was quick off the mark as Daryl was quick off the mark to catch up.

The kids had already retired for the evening apparently exhausted from the days events, some of the others had gone on up to bed too leaving only Rick, Glenn and Hershel down stairs huddled over a map discussing the next town run for formula for Judith.

"We're about 8 miles from that small town, there's not much there so it shouldn't be a over run but we cant account for looters," Glenn reasoned, the trio continued their discussions upon the pair entering the kitchen.

Elliot poured herself a glass of water and poured some on a rag for Daryl he declined to take it, what a baby Elliot thought and trapped Daryl in to the counter before dabbing his head herself. She made sure she was gentle, "Keep still!" Rick turned around to see Elliot tending to the wound on Daryl's head.

"What the hell happened out there?! Walkers?" Panic spread across the fathers face,

"Relax Rick," Elliot didn't want him to wake the sleeping kids, " one of those guys that attacked me was lurking around out there, Daryl took him out," her blue eyes flickered to Daryl's face she could see jaw tense and didn't miss the grip on the counter that turned his knuckles white.

"You okay?" Glenn asked

"fine, " Daryl shoved his way past Elliot out to the porch grabbing his jacket on they way.

Throwing himself down on the porch he reached into his jacket and produced a cigarette, lighting the end he took in a drag as though it was his first breath. Who the hell did Elliot think she was, he didn't need anyone lying for him. Daryl Dixon didn't need nobody's approval.

Elliot was left wide eyed in the kitchen before Rick's voice coaxed her back to reality,

"You sure you're okay Elliot?"

"Wha?," she slumped against the counter " Yeah, I'm fine thanks. What's his problem?" she crossed her arms tightly across her chest wanting nothing more to do with that damn ignorant ass right now, she'd saved his life from being killed and fed like a dead dog to the walkers and she had given him and his rather large group shelter but he still had to thank her or show an ounce of appreciation. Even after she had allowed him to lie about being beat by a girl just to save hurting his pride, why was she even bothering? Not like she knew the guy or even owed him anything.

Rick sighed his hand running through his greying hair, it was the first time Elliot had regarded the leader properly since his arrival. She reckoned he was in his late 30's but the end of the world had aged everybody a lot less gracefully then they rightfully should have. He had permanent worry lines around his bright blue eyes, they were rather sweet making him look pensive and moody. His voice brought Elliot back into the room

"Daryl's a bit of a lone wolf, Elliot," he reasoned " He's going through a bad time right now,"

"It's the end of the fucking world Rick, nobody's exactly having a ball," Elliot scoffed.

The older man smiled with sadness in eyes, "I know, it's just our group have lost a lot of people of late. Daryl's brother one of them. He's done things others wouldn't be capable of you know, sometimes he just needs space,"

He can have all the space he wants with that damn bad attitude, "I'm gonna head up to bed, I hope you guys get some decent shut eye tonight!" she smiled before retreating upstairs but not before stepping out the front porch to see Daryl sat in the swinging chair his feet planted firmly on the ground pulling him forward and backwards as he looking out into the Georgia night. Elliot thought he was rather attractive in the soft moonlight, just a shame he spoilt it by speaking her lips curled up into a smile at that thought.


	2. Chapter 2

**This story seems to have generated a little more interest than I initially thought, feel free to drop me a few lines in a review so I know what you guys like about Elliot and the story or don't like, either way. Just a quick update with a few teasers to where Elliot has come from. **

**Afraid I own no characters from TWD. Elliot is all I got. Enjoy!**

Strength is something we chose

The little bedsit in Georgia was worse than she had prepared herself for, she wasn't used to a life of luxury but at her home back in Kentucky at least the walls weren't damp, pulling her knees close to her chest Elliot rested her chin on her kneecaps and hugged her legs close. Squeezing her eyes shut she tried to drown out the sounds of the drunk abusive husband downstairs. It killed her to think that she had left the comfort of her family loving home to come here, but she knew it was for the best, her parents would never have supported her decision. This wasn't the path they had envisioned for their daughter, her father would have had a heart attack at the mere thought of what she had decided, the reality would have finished him off. Her parents were good people, they had taught Elliot and her older brothers respect and instilled them with strong moral compasses. Elliot felt in her momentary lapse judgement she had let her family down but she was a Brookes and they always saw things through to the end, no matter how tough things got she wasn't going to quit , she had to stay strong and just pray what she had was enough but she knew they couldn't live on love alone. It was going to be tough, no doubt , but Elliot wasn't afraid of hard work, if she had to work 2 jobs then so be it. She would do what was necessary, she wasn't going to be beat down by the reality she had been dealt.

Her thoughts were broken by the sound of a new born babe crying, a cry only a mother could soothe.

The cries of a baby ripped Elliot from her sleep it took her a few seconds before she remembered her house guests and the 6 month old baby girl they had brought, little screamer was busy alerting walkers to the house full of fresh meat. Throwing her feet over the side of the bed she padded sofly to the babe that was crying, she opened the door to Ricks room. He was clearly in a deep sleep as he kept twitching almost waking to tend to his daughter, deciding to leave Rick to enjoy what was probably his first good nights rest in many months Elliot lifted her out of the crib and cradled her in her arms carrying her out the room and down to the kitchen.

Judith had began cooing as Elliot rocked her in arms, it came flooding back to her the second she picked the baby up just how easy motherhood was to her, like a second nature. While she was heating some formula she had found in their bags with a pot of hot water, she stroked Judiths cheek tenderly. As Judith greedily drank from the bottle Elliot found herself wondering how Judith would fit into this world, she couldn't possibly be afforded the same childhood as Carl, Beth or her own son, Joshua.

Just thinking of his name ripped her beating heart in two, the tears already began before she was even aware. She'd been on her own for so long she had been able to put Joshua out of her mind, to get on with surviving but having the Grimes children and Beth around made that so much more difficult right now. She felt a pang of jealousy towards Rick, not only had his son survived but he had the miracle of Judith in the middle of the worlds end. Elliot was more than aware that his gain had not been without loss but Elliot had lost her boy and her fiance.

Looking down at baby Judith she saw sleep had overcome the little babe as she lay slumped aginst Elliot, her little hands wrapped around Elliots index finger. The gesture warmed Elliots heart and the sentiment took her away from the world where the dead walked the Earth and gave her a few moments of bliss to bask in the wonder that was a new born baby.

Elliot was so engrossed in Judith she hasn't noticed the presence stood leaning against the wall behind her watching, Daryl had used his hunter like stealth to follow the sounds of Judith. He had been atuned to the baby girls sounds since Rick had gone postal back at the prison. She was one of the most important people he had to protect, such innocence born into a world overcome with evil. It was true Judith Grimes had Daryl Dixon wrapped around her little 6 month old finger. He listened carefully, he could tell Judith was asleep by the sound of her level breathing so the other so the other had to be Elliot. She was sobbing. He figured he'd interrupted a private moment and was stuck between standing there silently like a coward or trying to take Judith so Elliot could have her privacy.

He quietly cleared his throat, not missing how Elliot's shoulders frooze, he crept over to sit on the coffee table in front of Elliot who had her legs tucked under her with Judith cradled in her arms.

"I heard her crying, didn't think Rick had woken," as though explaining why he was there he glanced up at Elliot before staring at Judith, the only female that brought a smile to his face, he reached a hand out the touch rub her little chubby arm that was reaching up gripping Elliot's finger. The woman nodded brushing away the tears that were rolling down her cheeks.

"Yeah, I thought maybe you guys were just in a deep sleep. Its okay though, I don't mind," She looked down at Judith with a look Daryl could only describe as longing. "Did you have any?" Elliot looked up at Daryl.

His face twisted " Hell naw! Dixon's don't do family all that well," truth was no one stuck around long enough for it to be an option, his brother Merle may well have had a couple of illegitimate little brats running wild round the South but the younger Dixon had always been more careful, raising a kid had never been his agenda. " You?"

Elliot nodded, holding Judith tighter as the little girl protested and began to stir, "His name was Joshua," she smiled as she said his name but Daryl could see a flood gate behind that sad pathetic smile.

Luckily Rick appeared behind them breathing a sigh of releif , "Sweet Jesus Elliot, when I saw Judith wasn't there I thought the worst! Is she okay?" Daryl had never been more happy to see Rick, dude had timing of a saint, no way was he ready to hear another story of a lost child. The thought of Sophia still hung heavy on his heart.

Elliot handed Judith to her Daddy before wrapping her arms around her chest trying to savour the feeling, "Yeah, little tyke was just hungry. I didn't wanna wake ya. Was sleeping like a baby," She laughed rubbed her cheek.

Rick apologised before he returned back upstairs with Judith leaving Daryl and Elliot in the front room, Daryl hadn't moved from his seat on the coffee table but Elliot was now stood behind the sofa supporting herself by clutching the back. She exhaled loudly bringing herself back into the present moment looking over at Daryl, she was stuck in the most awkward tango with the most socially awkward guy alive in the South.

"So what coffee you got in this fancy joint?" Daryl broke the silence, was no way he could sleep now. He was up for the day.

Elliot smiled pushing her self from the sofa thankful for the distraction, " I'll see what I got,"


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 **

**Ignorance**

**Sorry it's taken so long to get this up! Thanks for all the Fav's and Follows! Don't forget to drop a line in the reviews for me so I know what you guys are thinking, I know where I want this story to go its just driving it in that direction so stick with me. I'm trying to name the chapters after songs to give a picture of Chapters, this one had a helping from "Ignorance" by Paramore.**

The sun rose quickly bringing with it the heat of morning, each of the guests awoke at different times but every one of them looked well rested and a little more at peace than yesterday. Elliot had fixed breakfast for them all, hot porridge. Maggie had devoured her bowl already and was back again for more thanking Elliot before she and Carol began on clean up duties.

Elliot watched how the group interacted, she had been by herself so long it seemed she had forgotten basic human interaction, seeing it around her made her realise how much she missed it. It warmed her to see even with the world gone to shit people still had compassion for one another, even strangers thrown together in the midst of hell.

"What'd you think Elliot?" Glenn's chirpy little voice brought her back to the hustle and bustle of the days trip to the next town over to get some formula for Judith and such.

"It was only a small town, so shouldn't be too many walkers hiding up in there but there's a few properties like mine out here. Tucked outta the way, ya know. I don't know who or what's in those, so if we can get past them unscathed I'd say we gotta shot,"

Rick nodded going over what Elliot had told them in his head, " I hate to ask you to do this Elliot but you're the only one who knows the area. Would you go into town if we gave you cover?"

"I don't see why I can't, not like I gotta whole lot going on right now," She laughed a little earning her a smile from Maggie, she was being to warm to that girl.

"Okay, so Glenn you'll go into town with Maggie and Elliot to get some supplies. It'd be best if you took the truck,"

"if we go we take my car," Elliot interrupted, " It doesn't use too much gas and I'll be driving, like you said Rick I know the area best. Where to avoid and little short cuts,"

Rick could see her reasoning, "Okay, that seems reasonable."

"I'm going too," Daryl entered the room his bow slung over his shoulder.

The group looked round, Rick was ready to argue but Daryl interjected, " Last time Glenn and Maggie went solo we met a guy called the Governor in case ya'll forgot,"

"We got jumped Daryl," Elliot was gonna ask more but Maggie shook her head slowly at her.

"And I'm gonna be there this time to make sure it don't happen again _Glenn_," Daryl snatched up a peach from the bowl placed on the table.

So, with it decided the four of them began to pack up the car taking a few supplies of food and water incase the worst happened, few words were spoken as the group said goodbye. Elliot had gone ahead to the car, she felt out-of-place and awkward. Throwing her bag into the back seat she shut the door to find little Carl Grimes stood in the doorway.

"Hey Champ, what's up?"

Carl twitched his nose as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a knife, Elliot was horrified at first but this was a kid who had been running trying to survive for the last winter. Carl probably had more practice with it than her.

"Take this, your gun will attract walkers and other people. Just make sure you get them in the head." as Elliot knelt to take the knife Carl threw his arms round her in a hug. Elliot was touched by his kindness. The others entered the garage, Daryl ruffled Carl's hair before sending back to his dad.

"What the hell! Lets take this!" Glenn ran his hand along the BMW.

Elliot shook her head as she laughed at Glenn, "You wanna drive that Glenn?" she tossed the young guy the keys from inside the cabinet.

"You think it's wise taking two cars, using twice as much fuel?" Daryl stalked round to Elliot's side of her Nissan so he was out of earshot from the others.

Elliot considered his point, half of her agreed but the bigger half of her thought to hell with it, it was the end of the world if the kid wanted to drive a fancy car then let him. Could be dead tomorrow.

"Yeah, gives me a cover. Besides, we don't gotta worry about fuel just yet," She nodded towards the few canisters under the work top.

Shaking his head Daryl pushed him self from the car and walked round to the passenger seat slamming the car door behind him.

Rick smiled at Elliot nodding his head as a reminder to the conversation about giving Daryl time in the kitchen, she just had to ride it out, she climbed into the car before pulling away in front of Glenn and Maggie.

The car was deadly silent for most of the journey. Elliot kept stealing glances at Daryl, his jaw was still clenched as he stared out his window avoiding Elliot's eyes , she could see him dragging breath into his lungs probably in trying to quell his anger. She sighed as turned attention to the open road, putting her foot down Elliot checked her rear view mirror to see the BMW close behind her.

"There's a grocery store in the town or a small mall on the outskirts of the town, I've not been as a the outskirts yet so I dunno what we'd be going into. What do you think?" Elliot began to slow the car as the were approaching the centre of the town, her plan was to ditch the car as close as they could if a quick get away was needed.

Daryl turned to face Elliot, he was still pissed at her for indulging Glenn they had to be careful with their resources protect what they had, " stick with the grocery store , haven't come equipped to take out a mall, "

Great, he was back to monosyllabic communication. Elliot pulled into an area just behind the store.

The four of them formulated a plan that consisted of Glenn, being the fastest, would be the one to the raid the stores with Elliot as she knew the area best whilst Daryl and Maggie would be on the watch for any kind of intruders. They kept a tight formation as they approached the small town shops, it was clear the area had been abandoned for some time since the outbreak as rubble scattered the sidewalks along shards of glass from broken car and shop windows and the occasional body lay motionless and bloody on the floor. Elliot didn't take the bodies in too much afraid she would see a face she may recognise.

Elliot tapped Glenn on the shoulder and motioned to the store on the far left, Daryl being the natural hunter had already began scouting the area for walkers or any other forms of life. He kicked the door open and quickly but efficiently checked the store whilst Glenn and Elliot grabbed what they could. Elliot made sure to fill her bag with baby essentials for Judith. Luckily most of the town had been too old for any of their children to be under the age of 20, so there was plenty to loot. Elliot thought about how quickly the town had fallen since the outbreak, many of the families had left when news broke of what was happening deciding to travel the alleged safe zone, Atlanta. The majority of those who stayed behind after that were the elderly residents who were too frail to leave or just had no desire to run. Elliot sighed as she remembered Duke, every town had their own miserable loner and Duke was theirs, his wife had died just before Joshua was born and they had no children of their own so Duke was alone. Elliot had taken a liking to him, he reminded her of her own father, she would often take Joshua out there when Danny was away with meals she'd cooked for him. She remembered teasing the old man when he asked what he had to do to just be left alone she'd told him, "You love having me and Joshua bother you Duke, that's why you wait out on the porch when you know you Danny's away," She'd seen Duke the day before it happened, he seemed the most content Elliot had ever seen him, when Joshua had began to pack the train set Duke allowed him to play with Duke insisted he take it. This struck Elliot as odd as Duke always scolded Joshua when he would be too heavy handed with his beloved train set. When they went to leave Duke embraced Joshua in such a loving caring way Elliot knew what he was going do. He'd grown tired of being a prisoner in his own home, tired of being alone and tired of seeing people around him die.

When he hugged Elliot it felt alien as he never showed too much affection but it felt fitting, she had said Duke could come back them and she would look after him, that he didn't have to do this. But Duke had convinced her it was his time and he was gonna go on his own damn terms, besides his Betsy had waited long enough for him. Elliot reluctantly let the man go, it was the hardest goodbye.

She had told Joshua that Duke had travelled to Atlanta, he didn't need to understand why people were making the decisions they were making these days, she still wanted to protect his innocence from this hell as long as she could. With every run they made to town she noticed fewer and fewer signs of human life, it seemed more of the town had joined Dukes way of thinking until she saw no living soul at all.

When the bag was full Elliot whistled to Glenn who had grabbed medical supplies and some bags of grains and pastas, they met at the door where Daryl and Maggie were stood watch. Maggie turned her gun on Elliot as she pushed the door open but immediately lowered it with an apologetic smile whilst Daryl laughed. Everybody was on edge all the time these days.

"Glenn and I will get the car back here, place seems dead so you guys can wait it out," Glenn dropped the heavy duffel he was holding on Maggie's instruction.

"We should stick together, the bags aren't so heavy we can't carry them." Elliot didn't want the group to split, after heading to town so many times by herself she found there was a definite sense of power in numbers.

Daryl agreed with Elliot but Maggie and Glenn were insistent and had taken off for the car parked a few streets over, Elliot used her hand to shield her eyes from the hot mid day sun that was beating down on them. Squinting she shook her head as she watched them running, "This is the worst idea ever, we shouldn't be splitting up. We should have driven my car to theirs.," She kicked at the dirt in frustration.

Daryl watched Elliot as she looked out at Maggie and Glenn, she was beyond annoyed that they had had broken formation and he had to agree with her it seemed pointless but he had his suspicions that Glenn and Maggie were desperate for some time apart. Hell they'd been sharing a truck with him for the last few weeks, so he knew they'd had no alone time.

"They'll be back," He laughed and just gazed as Elliot spun round shooting a glare his way.

His arrogance bugged Elliot, he reminded her so much of the kind of men she had left in Kentucky, she stood leaning over the post on the front of the shopping cart holding area as he leant against the shop front. "Where'd you live before all this?" Elliot asked, she realised she knew only the names of the people residing in her home and found the silence unbearable anymore.

"Does it matter?" Daryl regarded her and she turned around her brow frowning.

"Guess not but it's a pretty simple question." She huffed, "just taking an interest, " her voice was thick was attitude and it irritated Daryl, she's known him less than 2 days and she was already grinding on his nerves.

Straightening up he squared his shoulders, " I don't see what interest my past is to a jumped up old money broad,"

Elliot's eyes widened. Just who the hell did Daryl Dixon think he was, " Judge people much?," she laughed at just how wrong Daryl was. " Look Dixon, that group back in _my _house may tolerate your shitty attitude but it's just not gonna fly with me," Elliot's hands came to rest on her hips as she held her stance, she wasn't gonna be made to back down here.

"Shitty attitude? I don't want to discuss social niceties and that's a shitty attitude? The world's gone to shit lady! It don't matter where we're from, or how much money you had in the bank. We're all on level pegging now, kill or get killed. that's all that matters now,"

Why did he keep mentioning money Elliot thought, "I'm not some stupid rich kid that's outta her depth Daryl, I've seen what the worlds got on offer right now and I know the cost of living, you hear me!," She stood toe to toe with the scruffy blonde, " You've obviously got issues with where you came from and that's okay, we all got demons. But if we're gonna get along and play nice then you're gonna have to get over yourself and trust I know what the fuck I'm doing, got it?" her chest was falling heavy she was so mad at him.

Daryl went to react to her defence but they both turned at the sound of the car pulling up to the store front, Daryl brushed past Elliot diffusing the situation he grabbed at the bags that Maggie and Glenn had dropped and threw them into the trunk before taking a passenger seat. Elliot stared after him, just what was it about Daryl Dixon that got her all hot and bothered. Sighing she followed after him and hopped into the opposite passenger door, neither one of them spoke even when they reached Elliot's Nissan it was a silent exchange of looks to separate the supplies, just in case. The car ride home seemed to last forever and Elliot was relieved to see the familiar gates of home.

Before Elliot even had the car in park Daryl had already jumped down from the car and slamming the door he grabbed for two large packs in the trunk before walking round past the drivers door and on into the house.

"Unbelievable," Elliot had muttered as she shut the door of the Nissan leaning back with her head rested on the glass. Savouring the few moments of silence she had before Rick or one of the others descended on her she thought about her heated exchange with Daryl, she really had no idea what his problem with her was especially when from she was standing she had given his group shelter she'd saved his life which had thrown their paths together. It really was difficult to see why he was being so arrogant towards her, Elliot couldn't even think of anything she may have said that could have offended him. He on the other hand had been deliberately malicious in his choice of words back at the store.

"Penny for them?" Elliot straightened up as Rick walked towards the car , he'd obviously been taking advantage of the water supply as he had shaved in the time that the small group had been gone. Elliot noted how different he looked, a lot younger than she thought he was although he still had a five o'clock style shadow she found him rather attractive in this new light.

"Huh?" Elliot pushed her self of the car and walked towards him on the porch

"Your thoughts," Rick laughed, "Never mind. Glenn said you guys had a good run in town. Look, I really appreciate you going into town with them and I can't ever thank you enough for allowing us to stay here," Elliot just smiled at Rick.

"Rick, it's fine. Honestly. I've been on my own some time here. The company, its nice," she strode past him on her way up to the house and didn't notice the way he looked her up and down as she had her back to him.

In the house everyone seemed to be busy with chores and Elliot felt in the way where ever she went , even thought this was her home she realised these people had obviously been together and established their own roles within the group dynamic. She hoped she's find hers soon if they were to remain at the house, she hated feeling so helpless. Helplessness was not something Elliot Brookes coped with well, she needed to feel in control she'd learnt the hard way when you're not in control bad things happen that can't be fixed. Smiling at Beth as she cradled Judith in the oversized rocking chair Elliot signalled that she was going to walk around the perimeter to get some air, Beth nodding laughing as Elliot grabbed a packet of cigarettes from the duffel bag on the floor.


	4. Chapter 4

Happy New Year! sorry its been a while, Christmas kinda got in the way! Enjoy, don't forget to leave reviews! could help me find inspiration to get these chapters up quicker!

**Roots**

(song by Orla Gartland)

Daryl lowered his cross-bow as soon as he realised it was Elliot, his mouth creeping up into an apologetic smile. Elliot waited for him let the crossbow dangle over his shoulder.

"That's the second time you guys have taken aim at me today, if I didn't know any better I'd say ya'll planning something," she half joked.

" Checking for walkers," Daryl offered as an explanation for why he was out in the yard.

"Same. Old habits die-hard," Elliot laughed at the pathetic attempt of conversation between them.

"M'guess," Daryl grabbed at his crossbow as he went to walk on past Elliot. He left her standing in the bushes as she stared after him.

"Daryl, what is it that I've done?!"

He stopped in his tracks before turning to see her, Elliot had her right arm crossed across her body holding on to her left arm, her head cocked to one side looking like a confused kid.

"You ain't done nothing," He called behind him, he didn't want to fight with Elliot, he didn't want to fight with anyone. He just wasn't used to someone pushing him like Elliot was, not since Meryl, the Atlanta group usually left him to sulk or deal with the situations in his own way but Elliot was like Meryl in the sense she would push his buttons until he cracked. But the difference was hers was unintentional although she sure as shit didn't seem afraid to come back at him.

"Then why you being such an ass? " Elliot noted how that made him stop walking away, she waited as he turned to regard her. For a split second she was worried maybe she'd pushed things too far, he was carrying a loaded cross-bow after all and it wasn't like anyone would come looking for her. The silence made her feel uncomfortable, " One minute we're getting on just fine then all's of a sudden you turn and I don't get it,"

Daryl wasn't in a hurry to respond, he mulled over what she said and just glared with pensive eyes. He didn't feel he owed anyone an explanation for the reasons he was the way he was, it had gotten him through life so far and it had kept him alive. " Don't take it personal, Elliot. I always been this way, always will be," the last part nearly got lost in the wind between them, Daryl pulled the cross-bow tighter over his shoulder and kicked at the dirt at his feet looking for a distraction but not wanting to turn his back on Elliot again.

She understood what he meant but it was by what he didn't say, Daryl was a closed book, what you saw at that moment was what you got and she had to respect that, and he had to respect her if this whole situation was going to work out. Elliot walked toward him holstering her weapon, she was done fighting right now, " You wanna finish this check before sundown?" they both walked in silence occasionally glancing at the other or stopping to check the noises from the surrounding woodland was actually from wildlife rather than unwanted walkers.

"Albany," Elliot turned her head to face Daryl as he broke their silence. "Albanys where I lived before the world went to shit,"

She could see just how much it took for him to share intimate details and felt obligated to return the favour but more because she wanted to set him straight.

"I'm not from "Old Money" She felt ridiculous just saying it " I'm not from any kind of money,"

The mood was quickly changing from awkward to a comfortable stroll, like a well rehearsed dance, each of them matching each others stride. " I just married a guy who I thought I loved, he was the one with the money, not me. " She sounded pathetic as she felt. The end of the world had made her face the reality that had been her life and see it for what it had been, an unhappy loveless marriage. A total waste of time.

The silence that consumed the rest of the walk was a comfortable one, it was more a dance as they learnt each others style, Daryl was more of a hold at arrow point kind of guy whilst Elliot was quick to remain hidden whilst holding aim at potential assailants. The team work between the two worked well although Elliot found herself oddly more aware Daryl. She noted the way his muscles flexed in his arms as he supported his bow, he was hardly Albany's next Mr. Muscle but she could see he was one who knew how to handle himself. His scent had filled her senses as she kept a pace behind him, it was a mixture of sweat and a manly musk, how real men smelt after a long honest hard days work. The soft lightening of the candles in the house came into view as the reached the end of the check.

"Thanks for helping Dar," Elliot whispered as turned back on the porch steps to face Daryl. He clearly wasn't expecting such as sharp stop as he halted on the step below Elliot bringing his face just a mere few inches between their faces, body heat swapping from one being to another. Elliot felt her eyes widen at just how close her and Daryl right now, she felt her throat dry as he gazed at her with a look that filled her with nerves. It felt like they were trapped in that gaze forever before Elliot was forced to turn to see who slammed the door behind them.

"Rick was beginning to worry about you two," Maggie stated as she lent against the door frame with her arms folded, Elliot felt like a school kid missing curfew.

Daryl jumped the last few steps. Very careful so as not to brush Elliot, and pushed his way past Maggie, " Nothing to worry over," he mumbled as he made his way inside and up the stairs to his sleeping quarters leaving Elliot out in the cold and wondering what the hell just very nearly happened out on her front porch.

She shook herself out of it and climbed the last few stairs letting the breath out of her lungs but found the old Greene sister was non too reluctant to move she looked at Maggie who had a know all grin plastered on her face.

"What!?" Elliot asked aware of the blush creeping up her cheeks.

"Some one is sweet on Dixon," Maggie chided hiding her school girl giggle, she thoroughly enjoyed this situation. Laughter was few and far between in this world now, Maggie wanted to saviour it.

"Someone is delusional," Elliot lied as she was stuck on the porch with the oldest, but not most mature, Greene sister. "Daryl and I were just checking for any issues around the fence, trying to make sure we stay safe!"

Maggie smiled as she shook her head, " I can see whats happening! I think its cute Elliot, Daryl needs a little _distraction."_

Elliot could not belive Maggie had been so aware of what she had only just become aware of herself, she found Daryl Dixon attractive but she was pretty sure she wasn't throwing the vibe she wanted to jump his bones out in the public domain. If Maggie had picked up on it the who else had?!

"Am I that pathetically obvious?" Elliot sighed looking at her feet, she really had forgotten how to hide her emotions since being on her own.

" Not at all, its just I'm a girl too. I was you before I met Glenn, Elliot. " Maggie offered a smile , " No shame in it girl. All human."

Elliot was touched by Maggies honesty and insight, it felt alien as ever since she left Kentucky she had never had close girlfriends and the friendships she had forged at high school had faded fast when she left.

"Come on Brookes," Maggie pulled Elliot into the house, " Hope you don't mind but Glenn and I may have found your stash of alcohol and decided we all needed a break from the shitty reality outside the gates."

The scene in the Lounge was one to envy, strangers who'd become family all sat around sampling the finest whiskies and wines that were housed in the Brookes cellar, luckily for them Danny had always enjoyed spending money on lavish things. Elliot glanced around and saw Maggie snuggled up the Glenn on the opposite chair Rick was sat with Carl who was looking up to his dad as he stole sips of the amber liquid. She pushed the jealousy down deep within as her gaze fell onto Daryl who had been caught like a rabbit in the headlights watching her. She smiled at him before settling down next to Beth who had found a guitar in one of the rooms and was serenading the group with country music.

"So ya'll found the liquor store," She laughed as she took her seat and joined in the merriment.

Daryl had made his way out side to grab some air, he was still adjusting to the close proximity that came with the Georgia group. He heard the door shut gently behind him and turned to let his glance fall on the front door seeing who was heading out turning so his back was against the first stair post he pulled his left knee up creating space for his night-time companion. Elliot sat down the first step looking out to the front yard and down the long driveway into the blackened distance. Both content on the silence that hung over them, until Daryl noticed the bottle of amber liquid she was swigging from like a hungry babe.

"Hey you gonna share that doll?" Daryl felt the glare she slung his way and took the bottle from her hands he felt how cold she was. Taking a long gulp he nodded in appreciation that Elliot had taste for the finer whiskeys left in this world. He placed the cap on letting the burn in his throat linger before sucking in the cold Georgia air.

"You really are a little Southern Belle playing dress up aren't ya?"

Elliot smiled at Daryl's cryptic slur, was he trying to insult her or what " What the hells that meant to mean Dixon?"

"The music, the whiskey, the sass, god lord the southern sass. It's a quite refreshing I'm not gonna lie," he took out his cigarettes and offered her one which she excepted.

"I always thought I hid it well you know, thought I'd stamped out the damn redneck," She laughed embarrassed at being caught out.

"No such luck lady, I bet you even still got your Christmas lights up there if I looked," Daryl relaxed against the post he loved how easy it was to talk to Elliot, he convinced himself it was the fact she was a southern gal, on his level.

"So, how'd you end up out in the suburb of Georgia?" he handed her the whiskey which was emptying quickly.

"I got knocked up pretty young," Daryl took a long drag on his cigarette allowing her to continue, he figured it was too late to change the subject. " Thought I was in love at 15 kept my baby which pissed my old man off no end. Babies daddy bailed leaving me with my baby boy aged 16 with no fucking clue of what I was gonna do. Got kicked outta school. So was just me and my Joshua. We moved out here because my mom's sister had a diner where I could work, she helped me with Joshua too. Aunt Carrie, she was an angel on Earth. I worked when I could to get as much money as I could for Joshua, then some years later I was doing an evening shift when I met some fancy head of a construction company, Danny. He was real sweet you know, way outta his depth down here in the South but the fact he was persistent was cute besides I didn't exactly have a queue of willing boyfriends lining out the door,"

She finished her story there but Daryl had more questions, mostly about the men who had left Elliot and under what circumstances.

Taking a long drink Elliot swiped her mouth with the back of her hand before Daryl saw that the bottle was emptied. "But everyone's got their own shit in this hell on Earth , right?" Elliot leant her had back against the post taking in deep breaths, Daryl found himself mesmerised by Elliot's exposed neck he had the deepest urge to just grab her by the waist and drag her ass over to him so he nip at the flesh until she begged him to stop. But given how much alcohol they'd consumed it may have been in bad taste and the fact she'd probably had enough of Rednecks like Daryl Dixon grabbing at her to last her a lifetime.

"I'm gonna head on up, You gonna be okay making your own way upstairs?" Daryl went to offer his hand to pull Elliot up but she just turned and shook her head.

"I'm just gonna sit out here for a while," She watched as Daryl stalked away from her, she thought the alcohol would give him a reason to stay and talk but she figured she blew that by drinking the majority of it for Dutch courage although Elliot was sure she'd seen a flicker of something in his eyes but obviously she was wrong. She dragged her self up the stairs, passing the room Daryl had claimed as his own she catch him as he was pulling his shirt up and over his back. Her mouth dried and she hurried past before she brought attention to herself.


End file.
